Cornyn says shutdown to get rid of Obamacare ‘won’t work’

Sen. John Cornyn, in Senate floor debate on the continuing resolution on the budget, said Friday, “I say to my friends who say we ought to shut down the government to get rid of Obamacare: It won’t work.”

Texas’ Republican senior senator said he would be voting for cloture on the resolution, moving it toward a vote, but not because he supports the health-care initiative championed by President Barack Obama.

Although he decried the political maneuvering that could cause a government shutdown, most of his comments were reserved for criticizing Obamacare.

Sen. John Cornyn said Friday that “closing down the government to stop Obamacare … won’t work.”

He said Obamacare was “sold to the American people under false pretenses,” and will cause millions of people to lose their health insurance, and “is destroying our economy.”

He added, “Some of our colleagues say ‘It’s the law of the land and we can’t change it.'” He said that was false.

“We operate on the consent of the governed. We can change laws … that’s what we do.”

He said “the false promises of Obamacare have been shattered by the harsh realities of Obamacare. … Now Congress has a second chance. … We have a chance to stop Obamacare in its tracks, to reverse the mistakes of 2009, and to allow Congress to pass real health-care reforms.”